Merritt: Training alone was difficult

Olympic and defending world 400m champion LaShawn Merritt Sunday said that training alone during his drugs ban had been tough but he stayed motivated by the knowledge he would race again.

The American qualified quickest from the world championships 400m heats in 44.35sec, the fastest time in the world this year.

“Extra work has been put in,” Merritt said. “I knew I was going to run eventually... wherever it was going to be, I was planning to come out running.

“It's pretty hard to train alone,” he added, referring to his ban.

Independent Online